TANKS Travel Tales - a travelogue.......

It has been quite a while since I last visited Europe. I am sure many things have changed since my last trip to the continent. But, many things probably remain the same. The food, the culture and the beautiful architecture that I have come to associate Europe with. My favourite city in Europe is Tallinn. The capital of Estonia is geographically small compared to many other European capital cities. But what it lacks in size, Tallinn makes up for in depth.  With its many well-preserved medieval buildings and structures, Tallinn certainly punches above its weight in history and culture. Its Old Town is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site and includes many notable buildings and structures dating back centuries. Toompea Castle is more than 800 years old, the Alexander Nevsky Orthodox Cathedral with its beautiful architecture is a sight to behold and the Town Hall is one of the oldest City Hall in northern Europe, if not the oldest. If I do travel to Europe for my next vacation, ...

Planning for December Travel......  Traveling in the year-end month of December is different from traveling during other months of the year, at least for me. Somehow, December being the last month of the year, has that festive vibes that make me more relaxed while every part of life simply just seemed to slow down, from work to personal. Travel during the traditional holiday month of December is definitely more expensive in my part of the world. December coincides with the year-end school holidays here in South-East Asia and is also the "last" month when most workers will need to "clear" their annual leave for the current year before the start of a brand new work year. This results in a rush to travel during this period, leading to higher costs in air tickets and destination accommodations. But, there are always ways to mitigate the increased costs of traveling during this period. My strategy is to choose a nearer regional location and to travel earlier in the month...

The Angkor Archeological Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is also one of the most important archaeological site not just in Cambodia but also probably in the South-East Asia region. The park covers an area that extended for hundreds of square kilometres and include major sites such as the Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom ancient temple complexes. Other notable sites include Banteay Srei, Beung Mealea, Srah Srang, Preah Khan and Preah Lup. I had been fortunate to get to visit the Angkor Archeological Park twice. During these visits, I got to view many of the artefacts and wall sculptures up close, taking digital photographs with both my DSLR and mobile phones. Video clips taken wit my digital devices during the second trip not just recorded what I saw and experienced but also hopefully, document the ingenuity of the ancient Khmer people who built these sites. Here, I had compiled a short 4-minute plus video of my second trip. The video is made up of a combination of video clips an...

In many places of great historical and cultural significances around the world, wall sculptures left by generations before us convey messages of events past. Such messages are recorded versions of history of the places where they are found.  I have always been fascinated by how our ancient ancestors were able to faithfully convey events that would otherwise require many pages of descriptive words, through a series of wall sculptures. The creative ingenuities, stone masonry skills and storytelling talents of our ancient forebears were translated into these beautiful and amazing wall sculptures that allow us of later generations, to learn and study the civilisations that preceded us. Are these wall sculptures from the past simply just art? Or recorded history? To me, they are both and more. In my previous visits to Cambodia's renown Angkor Wat in 2015 and 2022, I spent time studying the many wall sculptures that still remained in this ancient site. The experience has made me more awa...

Cambodia, Siem Reap, Solitude at Angkor Archeological Park This article was previously published in this blog in May 2022. Written as an article in my series of Post-Trip Recollections Series, this trip was for me in every way a bucket list travel item in a very unique way. Why? Because it was my first time taking an airplane in almost 3 years. Mid-2022 was the period when worldwide travel restrictions imposed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic was slowly being lifted. I also wanted to use this chance to re-visit the Angkor  Archeological  Park. Usually crowded with tourists pre-pandemic, I thought then that it was my chance to re-visit Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, without the crowds. Having more time to study the historical archeological artefacts at my own leisure would be an amazing experience.  And I was right. Compared with my previous visit to these same sites, this visit allowed me much time to slowly walked through the site...

Singapore, Tanglin, Singapore Botanic Gardens -  UNESCO World Heritage Site Singapore is a small city-state where land scarcity is a perpetual issue. However, in the midsts of all the buildings and structures of concrete and glass, city planners somehow managed to find space for beautiful gardens and reserved primary and secondary forests. The Singapore Botanic Gardens is one such place and is amazingly located right in the fringe of town. Flanked by foreign embassies on one side, a busy and world renowned shopping stretch on the other, a hospital on another side and private landed bungalows along much of its perimeter, this tropical oasis of a garden took pride of place right next to a bustling world city. Swan Sculpture in the middle of a lake within the Gardens' grounds, Singapore Botanic Gardens, Tanglin, Singapore (2023) Growing up, visiting the Gardens were a fairly regular activity for me, from school excursions to family outings during festive periods. I always loved these ...

When I traveled to Siem Reap in May 2022 to visit the famous archeological and historical sites at the Angkor National Park, I found the place fairly deserted of international tourists. This was in start contrasts to my first trip there in 2015 where the whole area were basically swarming with lots of visitors, most of whom had travelled there internationally. Seizing upon this rare opportunity, I had a great time photographing the temples at the sites, including closeups photographs of the many intricate and stunning wall carvings, paintings and sculptures that had stood for centuries. For me, one of the most impressive sites at the Angkor National Park is the Baphuon Temple. Built sometime in the 11th century by Suryavarman I, Baphuon was originally dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva. If one exits the temple at its west side and goes further back, an impressive sculpture of a reclining Buddha measuring approximately 9 metres by 70 metres can be seen. According to historians, this recli...

  "Let your wanderlust take hold and bring yourself to places unknown....... " - Timothy Tan, tankstraveltales Stairs, Old Town, Tallinn, Estonia (2017)

Nothing is more magnificent than the sight of historical monuments which are testament to past civilisations. These monuments are living evidence of the history, culture, arts, science, knowledge, politics, religion and more of people who, collectively with other civilisations across the world and across the ages, form the basis of humankind and its evolutionary history.  Located near Siem Reap in north-eastern Cambodia, historical Angkor Wat is the largest religious temple complex in the world based on land area. Built in the early 12th century, Angkor was originally constructed as a dedication to the Hindu god, Vishnu. Towards the later part of that century, the temple complex was converted to a  Buddhist temple.  In 1992, the Angkor Archeological Park was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the 16th Session of the UNECSO World Heritage Committee. Angkor Archeological Park includes Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom.  Angkor Wat Temple Complex, Angkor Wat, Angkor ...

Mount Kinabalu, Kinabalu National Park, Sabah, Malaysia -  UNESCO World Heritage Site This was a previous article written by myself and posted in this travelogue blog in September 2014. Mount Kinabalu is located in the island of Borneo and is South East Asia's highest peak at 4,095.2 meters (13,436 ft) above sea level.  ****************** Note from the  Author : Unlike my other older travel articles on my visits to cities, Mount Kinabalu has probably not changed much over the years. Thus, what I experienced on my trek up this mountain in Dec 2000, is also likely to be what anyone who is ascending the summit today will experience.  My first encounters with moutains were in Nepal in 1998 while I was trekking around the Annapurna region of the Himalayas. I also clocked my first peaks there and the highest of these peaks were at altitudes of 3,600 to 3,800 meters (11,811 to 12,467 ft). More than two years later on Christmas Eve of December 2000, I was at the fo...

Reminiscing my past travel trips and looking back at some of the photographs I took during these trips, I came across this photograph of a polite queue of visitors. The folks seen in this photo were all waiting patiently in line for a photograph of themselves with the Floating Torii Gate of Itsukushima Shrine to commemorate their trip to Miyajima (a.k.a Itsukushima). And why shouldn't they? After all, this is considered one of the three best views of Japan. Partaking in the fun, I joined the queue soon after I took this photograph. And I was rewarded with that memorable picture of myself with the Floating Torii Gate. :-) Queuing for  a photograph with the Floating Torii Gate of Itsukushima Shrine, Itsukushima, Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima  Prefecture, Japan (2019)

The Tower of Pisa, more famously known worldwide as the Leaning Tower of Pisa, is located next to the Cathedral of Pisa in Piazza dei Miracoli in Pisa, Italy. The Tower was completed in the year 1399. However, its original construction started much earlier, around the year 1173. Although its original height was 60m, the current height of the Tower is now lower, at about 56.6m at its highest point.  The Tower of Pisa is part of a group of four elements of the complex of  monuments in Piazza dei Miracoli ( Square of Miracles). The other three elements in this group are the Cathedral of Pisa, the Baptistry and the Monumental Cemetery.  An interesting fact not known to many casual visitors is that apart from the Tower of Pisa, both the Cathedral and Baptistry are also sinking. The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Pisa, Italy (2007)

Commissioned and built in the first century A.D. by the Emperor Vespasian, the Colosseum was opened in the year A.D. 80 by Vespasian's successor and son, the Emperor Titus, as the Flavian Amphitheater. The Colosseum, Rome, Italy (2007) For almost four centuries after its opening, the Colosseum was actively in use before it fell into neglect. Devastated by an earthquake in 1349, the entire outer south side of the Amphitheater's structure collapsed. Its stones were subsequently used as building materials for Rome's infrastructures including palaces and churches. At its peak, the Colosseum could hold up to 80,000 spectators for public events including gladiatorial battles as well as animal hunts and fights. On the less gory side, the Colosseum was also used to stage dramas based on classical mythologies. Today, the Colosseum lies in substantial ruins relative to its heydays. But it remains an iconic symbol of Rome in its imperial days and a major tourist att...

Estonia, Tallinn, Old Town - UNESCO World Heritage Site From a young age, I had read countless books on fairy tales where the central characters lived in medieval Europe. The age-old story of Hansel and Gretel quickly came to mind when I was planning a trip to Helsinki and the idea of a side trip to Tallinn cropped  up. Reading up as much as I could about Tallinn, I realised that the Old Town district of the Estonian Capital is considered to be the best preserved medieval city in northern Europe. Pictures of cobblestone streets and buildings with Gothic spires convinced me that I had to make the trip as a personal travel Bucket List item. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, the Old Town of Tallinn has no lack of churches, houses, barns and streets all dating as far back in time as the Middle Ages.  When I arrived in Tallinn onboard the ferry from Helsinki, I immediately headed for the Old Town. Entering the town through the Viru Gates transported ...